Published: Thursday, February 7, 2013 at 7:01 p.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, February 7, 2013 at 7:01 p.m.

The Houma-Terrebonne Airport got some extra business over the Super Bowl weekend, but some people question whether airport personnel did enough to promote it.

David Slayter, executive director of the Airport Commission, last week predicted 35 to 50 aircraft coming in for Super Bowl weekend.

But there were only 21 aircraft, Slater said this week.

The airport is one of the closest outside the temporary flight restriction area that was enforced around the Superdome Sunday. It also has a control tower and runway big enough to land a 737.

Slayter said his initial estimate came about because of reservations the airport received earlier last week, but more canceled than he expected, which isn't unusual.

What typically happens is people will make reservations at a number of airports in advance and take their first choice, Slayter said.

Still, Slayter said the count is significantly more than what the airport normally gets, just “not as many as what we were expecting.”

Bobby Butler, who runs Butler Aviation, a local air taxi service, said he was disappointed with the outcome and conceded that Slayter didn't do a good enough job promoting the airport like other cities did.

“It was dead,” Butler said. “The Jet Center got some airplanes, but we only got two.”

No one from the Jet Center would comment on the issue.

Charlie Hammonds, president of Hammonds Air Services, which provides charter flights and a flight school out of the Houma airport, said he doesn't know what happened this year. But he remembers there were a lot more planes during the 2002 Super Bowl in New Orleans.

“It may have been a lack of promotion from the airport commission,” he said. “Something happened, but I don't know what it could have been. There could have been many more airplanes here.”

Slayter said the Houma airport was promoted through the Super Bowl committee website and the airport's own website.

“It is completely up to the people in the aircraft services they use,” Slayter said. “I would have enjoyed more aircrafts, but considering the location we are at, we did pretty well.”

The Hammond Northshore Regional Airport got more planes, Slayter said, but that was possibly because it offers a straight shot to New Orleans.

<p>The Houma-Terrebonne Airport got some extra business over the Super Bowl weekend, but some people question whether airport personnel did enough to promote it.</p><p>David Slayter, executive director of the Airport Commission, last week predicted 35 to 50 aircraft coming in for Super Bowl weekend.</p><p>But there were only 21 aircraft, Slater said this week. </p><p>The airport is one of the closest outside the temporary flight restriction area that was enforced around the Superdome Sunday. It also has a control tower and runway big enough to land a 737.</p><p>Slayter said his initial estimate came about because of reservations the airport received earlier last week, but more canceled than he expected, which isn't unusual.</p><p>What typically happens is people will make reservations at a number of airports in advance and take their first choice, Slayter said. </p><p>Still, Slayter said the count is significantly more than what the airport normally gets, just “not as many as what we were expecting.”</p><p>Bobby Butler, who runs Butler Aviation, a local air taxi service, said he was disappointed with the outcome and conceded that Slayter didn't do a good enough job promoting the airport like other cities did. </p><p>“It was dead,” Butler said. “The Jet Center got some airplanes, but we only got two.” </p><p>No one from the Jet Center would comment on the issue. </p><p>Charlie Hammonds, president of Hammonds Air Services, which provides charter flights and a flight school out of the Houma airport, said he doesn't know what happened this year. But he remembers there were a lot more planes during the 2002 Super Bowl in New Orleans. </p><p>“It may have been a lack of promotion from the airport commission,” he said. “Something happened, but I don't know what it could have been. There could have been many more airplanes here.”</p><p>Slayter said the Houma airport was promoted through the Super Bowl committee website and the airport's own website. </p><p>“It is completely up to the people in the aircraft services they use,” Slayter said. “I would have enjoyed more aircrafts, but considering the location we are at, we did pretty well.”</p><p>The Hammond Northshore Regional Airport got more planes, Slayter said, but that was possibly because it offers a straight shot to New Orleans.</p><p>Hammond Airport Direct Jason Ball said the airport got about 120 planes.</p><p>A lot of that was because of Hammond's proximity to New Orleans, Ball said, but a lot of promotion was done by the operators who handle airfield business. </p><p>“We were advertising pretty heavily after (New Orleans Lakefront Airport) filled up,” he said.</p><p>Ball said the airport didn't pay for extra advertising because most of its clients were coming from out of town. The airport relied on local news to get the word out, he said. </p><p>“We are right over the lake, and we had transportation to take them to New Orleans,” he said.</p><p>Still, for Houma's location, 21 planes doesn't seem bad to Ball, considering other airports, such as the one in Biloxi, Miss., were giving away free rooms at casinos. </p><p>With Mardi Gras around the corner, business at the Houma airport should remain steady through the weekend, Slayter said.</p>